Nursing mnemonics that are worth learning for the NCLEX

A mnemonic earns its place when it holds a fact you would otherwise mix up under pressure. These are the ones that keep paying off in priority, safety and pharmacology questions. Each is checked against a named source.

Sources checked 6 October 2026.

Priorities: ABCDE and Maslow

ABCDE: Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure. Assess in that order, and treat a life-threatening problem before you move to the next letter. In a "which client first" question, a breathing problem outranks pain, teaching and paperwork.

Maslow's hierarchy sorts needs when no one is in immediate danger. Physiological needs and safety sit at the bottom of the pyramid and come first. Safety can even come before the airway: you move a person out of a burning car before you start resuscitation.

The nursing process: ADPIE

ADPIE: Assessment, Diagnosis, Planning, Implementation, Evaluation. Some texts add Outcome identification after Diagnosis and spell it ADOPIE. Assessment comes first in the process, so check that you have enough information before you choose an action.

Handover and escalation: SBAR

SBAR: Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation or Request.

• Situation: who you are, who the client is and what is happening now.
• Background: the history that relates to the problem, with signs, symptoms and results.
• Assessment: what you think the problem is, with the vital signs.
• Recommendation or request: what you need and when.

Medication safety: the rights

The six rights: right patient, right drug, right dose, right time, right route, right documentation. Check them three times before you give a medication. Document straight after you give it, so nobody gives the dose again.

Newer lists run to ten rights. They add the right history and assessment, the right drug interactions, the right to refuse, and the right education and information.

Isolation precautions: MTV

MTV for airborne precautions: Measles, Tuberculosis, Varicella. Chickenpox and disseminated shingles need contact precautions as well.

Standard precautions apply to every client. In Canada they are called routine practices.

Assessment: the five Ps, Cushing's triad and APGAR

The five Ps of tissue ischemia: Pain, Paresthesia, Paralysis, Pallor, Pulselessness. In compartment syndrome, pain comes first. It is out of proportion to the injury and gets worse when the muscle is stretched. Do not wait for the pulse to go.

Cushing's triad, a sign of raised intracranial pressure: high systolic blood pressure with a widening pulse pressure, a slow heart rate and irregular breathing.

APGAR: Appearance (skin colour), Pulse (heart rate), Grimace (reflexes), Activity (muscle tone), Respiration (breathing effort). It is scored at 1 minute and 5 minutes after birth. A score of 7, 8 or 9 is normal. Below 7, the baby needs medical attention.

Number rules worth memorising

• 15 and 15 for hypoglycemia: 15 g of fast-acting carbohydrate, retest in 15 minutes, repeat if the glucose is still below 4.0 mmol/L.
• 60 for the pulse: before digoxin or a beta blocker, an apical pulse below 60 means hold the dose and call the prescriber.
• 3 in 15 for nitroglycerin: one tablet under the tongue every 5 minutes, up to three in 15 minutes.
• Low and flat, high and tight for potassium: low potassium flattens the T wave, and high potassium makes it tall and peaked. See potassium and the ECG.
• -pril, -olol, -sartan: the ending names the class. See the pharmacology cheat sheet.

Fire safety: PASS

PASS for a fire extinguisher: Pull the pin, Aim low at the base of the fire, Squeeze the handle, Sweep from side to side.

How to use mnemonics well

• Learn the fact first, then the mnemonic. A mnemonic recalls what you understand. It does not explain it.
• Keep a short list. Ten that you can use beat fifty that you half remember.
• Test each one with practice questions. If it does not help you answer, drop it.
• Check the source. Practice changes, and a mnemonic can outlive the guideline it came from.

Medibara's lessons work in that order. A short video explains one topic, the memory aid comes at the end, and questions in your exam's format test whether you can use it. The lesson on potassium and the ECG ends on "low and flat, high and tight", after it has shown you why the T wave moves. You can play it in the demo on the Medibara home page. Start learning on Medibara.

You can also try a few on our free practice questions, or plan your weeks with the study plan builder.